Green Language (album)

Green Language is the second studio album by Glaswegian producer Russell Whyte under the alias Rustie.[1] The album, released on Warp on August 25, 2014,[2] was announced with the track "Raptor" - first played by Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1 in June 2014.[3] It features guest appearances from D Double E, Danny Brown, Gorgeous Children, and Redinho.[4] The title of the album derives from "the language of the birds".[5]

Green Language
Studio album by
Released25 August 2014 (2014-08-25)
Length36:46
LabelWarp
ProducerRustie
Rustie chronology
Glass Swords
(2011)
Green Language
(2014)
Evenifyoudontbelieve
(2015)

Production edit

Reflecting on Glass Swords in 2014, Whyte stated that he felt that he "“went kind of quite crazy on Glass Swords" and that he was "taking the piss with kitsch sounds and over-the-top silliness."[6] Whyte stated that he wanted his next album Green Language to be different and "more serious".[6] In between the release of Glass Swords and Green Language, Whyte scrapped an entire album's worth of material that he stated "didn't feel right as an album."[6]

Release edit

Green Language was released on August 25, 2014.[6]

Reception edit

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic69/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [8]
Clash6/10[9]
Exclaim!7/10[10]
Fact     [11]
The Guardian     [12]
NME7/10[13]
Pitchfork7.2/10[14]
Rolling Stone     [15]
Spin8/10[16]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 69, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 25 reviews.[7]

Tshepo Mokoena of The Guardian gave the album a rating of 4 stars out of 5, calling it "an exercise in variety that pushes the boundaries of what a synth-driven album can, and should, sound like".[12] Stephen Carlick of Exclaim! opined that "There are great tracks on Green Language, but a lack of consistency stops it from being a great album."[10]

Tom Lea of Fact commented on the album in 2015 that the album "divided listeners".[17] Whyte tweeted that he felt the Green Language was "too A&Red", later explaining that his managers were "trying to push me in one way, in kind of an avant garde, arty route, then I had other people trying to get me to do big singles, the vocal stuff and all that. I was getting pulled in two directions, which I think you can tell a little bit on the album."[17]

Complex named the cover of Green Language as one of the 30 best album covers of 2014,[18] while Pitchfork named it as one of the 20 best album covers of 2014.[19]

Track listing edit

All tracks are written by Rustie except where noted[8]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Workship" 2:00
2."A Glimpse" 2:15
3."Raptor" 4:14
4."Paradise Stone" 2:34
5."Up Down" (featuring D Double E)Rustie, D Double E3:44
6."Attak" (featuring Danny Brown)Rustie, Daniel Sewell3:01
7."Tempest" 1:43
8."He Hate Me" (featuring Gorgeous Children)Rustie, Jermaine Davis3:16
9."Velcro" 3:18
10."Lost" (featuring Redinho)Rustie, Tom Calvert3:21
11."Dream On"Rustie, Muhsinah Abdul-Karim3:07
12."Lets Spiral" 2:27
13."Green Language" 1:54
Japanese edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
14."Bonuzz"2:48

Personnel edit

  • Rustie – engineer, producer
  • Joe LaPorta – mastering[20]

Charts edit

Chart (2014) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] 116
UK Albums (OCC)[22] 154
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[23] 16
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[24] 22

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Coultate, Aaron (24 June 2014). "The mercurial beatmaker's second album will land on August 25th". Resident Advisor.
  2. ^ Milton, Jamie (23 June 2014). "Listen: Rustie previews new album 'Green Language' with 'Raptor'". DIY. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  3. ^ Swift, Patrick. "RUSTIE REVEALS NEW TRACK 'RAPTOR'". Mixmag. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  4. ^ Minsker, Evan (23 June 2014). "Rustie Details New Album Green Language". Pitchfork.
  5. ^ Hughes, Josiah (23 June 2014). "Rustie Shares Details for 'Green Language' LP". Exclaim!.
  6. ^ a b c d Fitzmaurice, Larry (21 August 2014). "Rustie". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  7. ^ a b "Reviews for Green Language". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  8. ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "Green Language - Rustie". AllMusic. All Media Guide. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  9. ^ Oliver, Matt (22 August 2014). "Rustie - Green Language". Clash. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  10. ^ a b Carlick, Stephen (22 August 2014). "Rustie Green Language". Exclaim!. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  11. ^ Finlayson, Angus (26 August 2014). "Rustie Green Language". Fact. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  12. ^ a b Mokoena, Tshepo (21 August 2014). "Rustie: Green Language review – brilliantly varied, futuristic electronica". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  13. ^ Cardew, Ben (21 August 2014). "Rustie - 'Green Language'". NME. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  14. ^ Sherburne, Philip (27 August 2014). "Rustie: Green Language". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  15. ^ Weingarten, Christopher R. (26 August 2014). "Green Language". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  16. ^ Frank, Aaron (25 August 2014). "Trap Producer Rustie's Brilliant 'Green Language' Is for the Birds". Spin. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  17. ^ a b Lea, Tom (5 November 2015). "Rustie releases new album EVENIFUDONTBELIEVE: stream and read our Q&A". Fact. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  18. ^ "The 30 Best Album Covers of 2014: Rustie, Green Language". Complex. 3 December 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  19. ^ "The Best Album Covers of 2014 (1/2)". Pitchfork. 4 December 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  20. ^ "Green Language". AllMusic. All Media Guide. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  21. ^ "Ultratop.be – Rustie – Green Language" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  22. ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "CHART: CLUK Update 6.09.2014 (wk35)". Zobbel. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  23. ^ "Rustie - Chart history - Top Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  24. ^ "Rustie - Chart history - Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 27 June 2017.

External links edit